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Those numbers sound about right to me Gary. In the grand scheme of things, you aren't really loading down the suspension much. I expect you'll be satisfied with how it handles the tow.
When are you leaving?
Tomorrow morn. I'm sitting here wondering what else I can do to get ready. I have a 35-item check list for the boat and all are ticked. I had a shorter list for the truck, and they are ticked. That included tire pressure setting, Rain-X on the windshield, cleaning all the windows, shimming the drawbar so it can't rattle, Armor All's leather care on the leather, 303 on the vinyl and tires etc. Then there's the new app for the phone to monitor various parameters on the truck.
But, all that is done and all that is left is to mow the yard.
I tow boats around that weight all the time and never once felt like I needed a WDH. I brought my friends boat from Houston TX to Racine WI a couple years ago. The dealer said it weighed 9,000 lbs & it towed just fine fine. Boats are balanced well on the trailers & don't seem to catch wind like enclosed trailers.
Are your brakes totally electric or are they electric over hydraulic? I've been thinking of converting mine.
2 common boat trailer failures are lug nuts and tires. I check mine every time I stop. I only go 50 ish miles the first timeout & check. If everything is good then I check at whenever we stop. If any nuts were loose or the tires seem too hot, I'll stop early again.
The brakes are electric, and work very well. And, I check tire temps, hub temps, etc. I'm happy to say that all has gone exceedingly well and the truck tows like a champ. See my new thread here for observations while towing.
I've been rolling those electric brakes around in my head for a while. It kind of bothers me that the trailer manufacturer would use electric brakes on hubs that are intended to be submerged in fresh, or even salt, water. It just seems like a recipe for disaster to me...
The lights on boat trailers use electricity as well, and they get submerged without issues.
Yup, but boat trailer lights are different from regular lights. Water tight and made to be submerged. Nobody makes a marine-grade electric brake; and brake manufacturers specifically exclude electric brakes from marine use.
Just returned from towing my enclosed car trailer with my 32 Ford in it to and around the metro Detroit area and back. A little over 6,000 lbs. and no WDH. No issues at all. Just normal buffeting when around semis. Not even close to making me nervous. I never had anyone flash the truck assuming my brights were on. Truck is basically level hooked to the trailer. Going up I showed 8.9 mpg on the computer. 10.1 on the way back (different route).
Forgetting the junction box on the tongue, which doesn't get dunked, the only electrical part of electric brakes that gets doused is the electromagnet. Period. And it is potted with nothing for water to corrode or otherwise cause problems. Just a coil of wire with a wire in and one out, all encased in epoxy.
Just to close out this thread, we are home after towing ~2000 miles. The truck handled the boat with absolutely no problems, so I'm confident that no weight-distributing hitch is needed for my rig. There was no swaying, even in the serious crosswinds we had. I am quite pleased.
Sounds like a plan Gary. Our boat is a bit lighter than yours, about 3,500 lbs altogether. No noticeable squat, and I'm absolutely certain the tongue isn't over 300 lbs. I/Os are heavy though, our 4.3L/Alpha 1 combo weighs just north of 1,000 lbs. Maybe 180-200ish on the tongue, and it tows great.
Hey! I've got an 01 Plastron with a 4.3 and a mercruiser. Those engines are indestructible. EFI and 225hp
